Templar Publishing is leading the publishing industry after releasing the very first book in the UK to feature augmented reality (AR). The technology, which blurs the real and the virtual world, allows readers to see a moving 3-D image of a dragon come to life from the pages of their own book. The book Dr Drake’s Comprehensive Compendium of Dragonology, the ultimate guide to dragons is published today (September 10, 2009).

The latest book in the best-selling Ology series – Dr Drake’s Comprehensive Compendium of Dragonology contains, amongst its fully illustrated chapters, a drawing of a European dragon on a specific page. By visiting the Dragonology website and holding this page up to an active webcam, readers can see the 3-D dragon materialise on the page, watch it come to life in amazing colour, see the dragon awaken and hear it roar, all directly on their own computer screen. The reader then has the unique ability to view the 3-D dragon from a variety of perspectives.

The unique 3-D experience has been developed for Templar by Total Immersion, a French software solutions specialist that has been leading the way in the field of augmented reality since 1999.

Amanda Wood, MD of Templar comments, “As soon as we saw this technology in Bologna we knew that we had to find a way to incorporate it into one of our titles. We have always tried to innovative when it comes to our Ology series, which thankfully has become a watchword for originality and excellence, and this amazing 3-D technology gives us the opportunity to offer our readers a unique new experience.”

Myles Peyton, UK Sales Director at Total Immersion says, “We are delighted to be working with Templar to launch the UK’s first augmented reality book experience. The technology offers publishers an amazing way to enhance the readers’ experience and bring characters and other story elements to life.

“AR works by integrating real-time interactive 3-D objects into a live video stream. Although the technology has been in development for more than ten years, it is only now that companies are realizing its true value, especially where it has the potential to revamp more traditional consumer products, such as books,” he explains.

“Since opening our UK office earlier this year, we have already created a number of groundbreaking consumer experiences for the likes of Paramount Pictures and Nokia, so the mass market potential for the technology is already there,” Myles adds.

Dr Drake’s Comprehensive Compendium of Dragonology is the latest book in the Ology series, which includes 35 titles and 8 core books. The Ology series has sold over 17million books worldwide into 34 countries and spanning 34 editions. Ology has become a publishing phenomenon. Each new book taps into the zeitgeist for young readers, achieving heights of imagination and quality of content, design and production. The series includes Dragonology, Egyptology, Wizardology, Pirateology, Mythology, Monsterology, Spyology and Oceanology.

Total Immersion (www.t-immersion.com) is the global leader in augmented reality. Through its patented D’Fusion® technology, Total Immersion blurs the lines between the virtual world and the real world by integrating real-time interactive 3D graphics into a live video stream. Leading the augmented reality category since 1999, the company maintains a presence in Europe (Paris and London) and in the US (Los Angeles). It’s solutions are also available through a nextwork of 30 partners worldwide.

The Templar Company Limited (www.templarco.co.uk) is a division of Bonnier Books. Templar is a publisher and packager of high-quality and award-winning children’s books. It created the bestselling Ology series as well as the acclaimed amazing baby® series and award-winning and innovative picture books including Simon Bartram’s Man on the Moon and Varmints by Marc Craste and Helen Ward.